Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations

Despite the ecological and economic value of the Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus), its gut microbiota remains largely understudied. The aim of the present study was to investigate the gut bacterial microbiota in three geographically separated N. norvegicus populations from the Mediterranean and...

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Main Authors: Polina Rusanova, Eleni Nikouli, Michele Casini, Gioacchino Bono, Elena Mente, Alexandra Meziti, Konstantinos Kormas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:The Microbe
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950194625001645
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author Polina Rusanova
Eleni Nikouli
Michele Casini
Gioacchino Bono
Elena Mente
Alexandra Meziti
Konstantinos Kormas
author_facet Polina Rusanova
Eleni Nikouli
Michele Casini
Gioacchino Bono
Elena Mente
Alexandra Meziti
Konstantinos Kormas
author_sort Polina Rusanova
collection DOAJ
description Despite the ecological and economic value of the Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus), its gut microbiota remains largely understudied. The aim of the present study was to investigate the gut bacterial microbiota in three geographically separated N. norvegicus populations from the Mediterranean and the North Seas and detect any potential sex-related microbiota differences, by high-throughput sequencing of the V3-V4 16S rRNA gene diversity of the gut tissue. Egg-bearing females from the Greek population, were also included in this analysis. A total of 2385 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified and between 417 and 1290 OTUs were present in each population/sex group. The dominant OTUs belonged to the Fusobacteriia and Bacteroidia (Sweden), Bacilli and Gammaproteobacteria (Italy) and Spirochaetia and Bacilli (Greece) bacterial classes. In the eggs, the Actinobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammproteobacteria prevailed. Four OTUs related to the Oceanispirochaeta, Kordiimonas, Desulfovibrio, Carboxylicivirga genera and one unafilliated OTU were positively correlated (p values between 0.001 and 0.04) with body size, indicating their potential role in the nutrition and growth of N. norvegicus. No statistically significant differences were found between males and females in any of the three populations. However, statistically significant differences between populations for each sex, were found for all females (p values between 0.008 and 0.032) and for the males between the most distant populations, i.e. Italy-Sweden (p = 0.021) and Greece-Sweden (p = 0.015). The egg microbiota was statistically significant different from both the adult female (p = 0.027) and male (p = 0.046) gut microbiota. Overall, this study revealed that the N. norvegicus gut microbiota is differentiated between geographically distant populations and that sex-related differences are not significant.
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spelling doaj-art-157f935c4f2e4bb1b2ceea6ac804a4382025-08-20T03:20:22ZengElsevierThe Microbe2950-19462025-06-01710039610.1016/j.microb.2025.100396Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populationsPolina Rusanova0Eleni Nikouli1Michele Casini2Gioacchino Bono3Elena Mente4Alexandra Meziti5Konstantinos Kormas6Institute for Biological Resources and Marine Biotechnologies, National Research Council (IRBIM-CNR), Mazara del Vallo, Italy; Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA), Laboratory of Marine Biology and Fisheries, University of Bologna, Fano, ItalyDepartment of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment, School of Agricultural Sciences, Volos, GreeceDepartment of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA), Laboratory of Marine Biology and Fisheries, University of Bologna, Fano, Italy; Department of Aquatic Resources, Institute of Marine Research, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lysekil, SwedenInstitute for Biological Resources and Marine Biotechnologies, National Research Council (IRBIM-CNR), Mazara del Vallo, Italy; Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies (STEBICEF), Palermo University, Palermo, ItalyLaboratory of Aquaculture and Aquatic Animal Diseases, School of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, GreeceDepartment of Marine Sciences, University of the Aegean, University Hill, Mytilene, GreeceDepartment of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment, School of Agricultural Sciences, Volos, Greece; Corresponding author.Despite the ecological and economic value of the Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus), its gut microbiota remains largely understudied. The aim of the present study was to investigate the gut bacterial microbiota in three geographically separated N. norvegicus populations from the Mediterranean and the North Seas and detect any potential sex-related microbiota differences, by high-throughput sequencing of the V3-V4 16S rRNA gene diversity of the gut tissue. Egg-bearing females from the Greek population, were also included in this analysis. A total of 2385 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified and between 417 and 1290 OTUs were present in each population/sex group. The dominant OTUs belonged to the Fusobacteriia and Bacteroidia (Sweden), Bacilli and Gammaproteobacteria (Italy) and Spirochaetia and Bacilli (Greece) bacterial classes. In the eggs, the Actinobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammproteobacteria prevailed. Four OTUs related to the Oceanispirochaeta, Kordiimonas, Desulfovibrio, Carboxylicivirga genera and one unafilliated OTU were positively correlated (p values between 0.001 and 0.04) with body size, indicating their potential role in the nutrition and growth of N. norvegicus. No statistically significant differences were found between males and females in any of the three populations. However, statistically significant differences between populations for each sex, were found for all females (p values between 0.008 and 0.032) and for the males between the most distant populations, i.e. Italy-Sweden (p = 0.021) and Greece-Sweden (p = 0.015). The egg microbiota was statistically significant different from both the adult female (p = 0.027) and male (p = 0.046) gut microbiota. Overall, this study revealed that the N. norvegicus gut microbiota is differentiated between geographically distant populations and that sex-related differences are not significant.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950194625001645CrustaceaGutMicrobiomeFisheriesNorth SeaMediterranean Sea
spellingShingle Polina Rusanova
Eleni Nikouli
Michele Casini
Gioacchino Bono
Elena Mente
Alexandra Meziti
Konstantinos Kormas
Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
The Microbe
Crustacea
Gut
Microbiome
Fisheries
North Sea
Mediterranean Sea
title Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
title_full Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
title_fullStr Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
title_full_unstemmed Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
title_short Sex-related gut microbiota in three geographically separated Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) populations
title_sort sex related gut microbiota in three geographically separated norway lobster nephrops norvegicus populations
topic Crustacea
Gut
Microbiome
Fisheries
North Sea
Mediterranean Sea
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950194625001645
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